How to stay motivated (and stop procrastinating) while learning Dutch

Do you have a lot of spare time but still can’t find the motivation to learn Dutch? Or have you sat down with your textbook — only to end up browsing DutchReview for a bit of light-hearted procrastination? 😉

Don’t worry, there’s no judgement from us. We’ve all been there.

Luckily, avoiding your textbook may just have helped you out this time, because the following article is for you. It includes five super-simple avenues you can explore to increase mindfulness. And hopefully, it’ll inspire you to not necessarily study harder, but to do it with a lot more purpose.

Drop the “I’m just not good at learning languages” excuse

Yes, we’re taking aim at native English speakers here.

When we take our first breath outside the womb we don’t immediately strike up a conversation with our parents, fluently, in our mother tongue:

“Hello, there. An absolute pleasure to finally meet you both.”

No, we learn it as a child. Now, you can bring up neuroplasticity and why it’s easier as an infant, but let us ask you this: have you ever met a child before? They often have an attention span that makes a goldfish look like a veteran scholar.

If they can do it, then you can too. So do yourself a favour, and stop believing that excuse.

Find your reason

If someone asks you why you are learning Dutch, and you cannot come up with an answer that convinces even yourself, then there’s your problem.

READ MORE | Learning Dutch: 7 questions answered

A lot of our procrastination comes from our emotions. You can procrastinate learning Dutch by drawing up an amazing, structured weekly plan (again), but if your heart isn’t in it then you will go around in unproductive circles.

So, as cliché as it sounds — you need to find your reason.

To speak to your Dutch boyfriend’s/girlfriend’s family? For work? It is usually for pragmatic reasons rather than pure love for the language, so the trick is to find a way to do it because you want to, not because you feel you have to.

Try to find passion in the process of learning a new language, acquiring a new skill, or from challenging yourself — these are all things for you. Just be honest with yourself.

READ MORE | 9 ways to fall back in love with learning Dutch

Three-students-standing-around-a-laptop-and-books-studying-Dutch
Finding someone to study with can also work like a charm for finding the motivation to learn Dutch! Image: Depositphotos

Set the benchmark low

Yes, you read that correctly.

People usually start by jumping into the deep end — being ultra-enthusiastic and unrealistic. It works for some people but is often not sustainable at all. Learning a language requires consistency.

However, expert Tim Pychyl says, “Once we get started, we’re typically able to keep going. Getting started is everything.”

Well, sort of, Tim.

Picture this: you set yourself half an hour with your textbook and after five minutes time seems to slow down in a way that even the most gifted of quantum physicists can’t explain. Oh look, you’re on Instagram — how did that happen?

So why not five minutes (no, seriously) every day on Duolingo. If Tim is right, five minutes may turn into a relatively painless ten, or fifteen. If you feel like doing more — do more. If you don’t, then it is only five minutes of your day. Power through it. 💪 After all, thirty-five minutes a week (plus the consistency of daily learning) is more than nought minutes per month.

22 x 5 minutes = more than nothing. Image: James Bogué/Supplied

Cultivate some self-awareness

Let us be clear: there are many, many brilliant and inspiring teachers out there, and a variety of incredible courses. But everyone learns differently and has different motivations.

For many of us, school did a great job of stunting any passion or confidence for languages, and the main consequence was to grow up believing that there was only one way to learn them. Which just so happened to be incredibly slow and dull. 🙃Taking two months to be able to say you wake up at six and clean your teeth just isn’t going to cut it when living abroad.

So experiment, explore, and find what works best for you.

Likewise, be aware of when you are most likely to lose motivation. Identify the cue for a bad habit, and change the routine slightly to avoid it and keep on track with your session. (For more on that, we highly recommend introducing yourself to Charles Duhigg!)

Practice, practice, practice

Simply put: use the Dutch you’ve already learned.

If you’re putting time aside to learn a language and then not using it, then what’s the point? We all sound stupid at first, we all make mistakes. Get used to it — but you really are not alone.

If you genuinely can’t summon up the confidence, then while washing the dishes or brushing your teeth have little conversations in your head. Link up new words, practice that quick formation of sentences and being creative with limited vocabulary. It sounds absolutely crazy, but you can build up that fluency without the anxiety and embarrassment.

Additionally, try reading articles online, listening to the radio or podcasts, using Dutch subtitles on Netflix, and looking at memes — it doesn’t matter what it is as long as it’s in Dutch! Surround yourself with it as much as you can.

READ MORE | 7 ways to learn Dutch fast and easy: our best tips to learn Nederlands in life

Success! (Good luck!)

What are your top tips for avoiding procrastination when it comes to learning a language? Drop them in the comments below! 

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in April 2020, and was fully updated in June 2022 for your reading pleasure.

Feature Image:Depositphotos
James Bogué
James Bogué
An Englishman fascinated by Homo sapiens and their cultures, and by extension the influence of politics, history, and psychology. But his absolute favourite? The perils of miscommunication (four words that accurately describe his journey with the Dutch language). Besides writing, he enjoys running, cycling and thinking about his next meals; and aspires to write a bestseller and speak at least ten languages.

Liked it? Try these on for size:

What do you think?

1 COMMENT

  1. Dutch is about a much use as Welsh, Icelandic or Maltese in the Modern World.

    In fact Dutch it is a Dying Language…

    Do you remember Latin ???

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Related posts

Latest posts

Pollen, allergies, and hay fever in the Netherlands: how to survive it

Ah, the sun is shining, birds are singing, and spring is on its way. But you know what else is coming to the Netherlands?...

A 14-year-old just took his ex-employer to court… and won

A fourteen-year-old Dutch boy was fired after failing to show up for his part-time job in a Tilburg butcher’s shop. He took his employer...

Living in Hoofddorp as an international: everything you need to know

So you want to live near Amsterdam and are curious about what it's like living in Hoofddorp as an international? We can’t blame you; it’s...

It's happening

Upcoming events

The latest Dutch news.
In your inbox.